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Hunger of the pine

I hope you all enjoyed the festive season. Having eaten so much meat in the past week I thought I’d share a fish dish with you to start 2015.

Risotto is something I often overlook on a menu, I admit I am guilty of going straight for the red meat. Having tried out a few recipes of my own for a smoked haddock and pine nut risotto, I’ve come to appreciate them much more. I made a duck and shiitake risotto a while back, which needs work, but will be up in due course…

Finely chop the onions, leek and chilli. Do the same with the herbs. Leave to one side…

Start by poaching your fish fillets in milk.Add enough milk to almost submerge your fillets to a large pan. Heat on medium until the milk is starting to bubble at the edges ever so slightly.
Reduce to a low heat and add the fillets.
Poach for 4 and half minutes MAX or until the fish feels soft and crumbly. Remove from the milk and cover with foil. Leave to one side…

Heat some olive oil in another large frying pan on high (I used a wok). Add the pine nuts and vegetables, reduce to medium heat, season well, and cook for 10 minutes.

In the mean time, add a vegetable stock cube to a pint of boiling water in another pan, and keep it simmering on low-medium heat.

Back to the vegetables. Pour in about a fifth of a bottle of the dry white wine and reduce for 6-7 minutes on medium-high.

Add about 1/2 a normal sized mug of the rice. Add the parsley and thyme.

Stir well and keep on medium heat for 2 more minutes. At this point you can start adding the stock gradually using a ladle. Keep on medium-high, and as each batch of stock gets absorbed by the rice, add more until the rice softens. You’re looking at about 15-20 minutes.

When you’re happy with the rice you can crumble the fish into it along with with the chives and lemon zest.